Scottish Parliament Welcomes World Whisky Day

Today the Scottish Parliament welcomed World Whisky Day and congratulated an Aberdeen University student for pioneering the event.

World Whisky Day will be held on 27 March 2012 and is the first time that whisky will be celebrated internationally on a specific day. Aberdeen University student Blair Bowman initiated the celebration which has attracted worldwide interest and support. Events will be held in the United States, Canada, across Europe, South Africa, Dubai, Kyrgyzstan, India, South Korea, Malaysia, and Australia.

Aberdeen Central MSP Kevin Stewart raised a motion in the Scottish Parliament hailing the international event, recognising how it can boost the reputation of Scottish Whisky and congratulating Blair Bowman for the work he has done to create the event. The motion has received cross party support.

Kevin Stewart MSP said:

“I am pleased to be able to recognise this international event which originated in Aberdeen. World Whisky Day has attracted such wide spread support from around the globe and will help to promote Scotland’s valuable exports. I hope to see it being repeated in the coming years giving a real focus to responsible enjoyment of our national drink.

“Blair has done a fantastic job getting World Whisky Day off the ground and I hope to see it getting further support from around the globe and locally in Scotland. This is a great opportunity for the industry to build on the success and reputation of whisky.”

Blair Bowman said:

“There has been tremendous support for World Whisky Day around the world but it is fantastic to have the Scottish Parliament welcoming World Whisky Day, and calling for its continued success.”

Notes:

SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT MOTION
Date of Lodging: 28 February 2012
Short Title: World Whisky Day
S4M-02141 Kevin Stewart () (Scottish National Party): That the Parliament congratulates Aberdeen resident, Blair Bowman, on creating a dedicated international day of celebration in honour of whisky: welcomes this, the first World Whisky Day, on 27 March 2012; believes that it will help to promote Scotland’s national drink round the world; understands that the day has already attracted interest from India, USA, South Africa and Kyrgyzstan, and would like to see World Whisky Day being successful for many years to come.

Milroy’s of Soho February Newsletter

February has been a great month for new releases, the Highland Park Thor being a particular highlight. We have also had new intern Anisa helping us out, you can follow her path into whisky on our blog.

BRUICHLADDICH
Octomore 4.2 COMUS
The latest Octomore release named Comus after the ‘God of wine’, looks to be a worthy successor to the incredible Orpheus. Like Orpheus, Comus is wine cask matured, although this time in super sweet Sauternes casks from top estate Chateau d’Yquem.
£85 – Pre-Order

GLENFIDDICH
Glenfiddich Age of Discovery – 19 Year Old Madeira Cask Finish
The second release of Glenfiddich Age of Discovery is due for release in March, the whisky is a homage to the Portuguese discovers of the 15thCentury. There will be limited availability pre-order now to save disappointment.
£90 – Pre-Order

GORDON & MACPHAIL
Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, Glen Grant 60 Year Old
Filled almost 60 years to the day before Queen Elizabeth acceded the throne, there are only 85 bottles of this incredible whisky.
£8,000

HIGHLAND PARK
Highland ParkThor 16 Years Old
The first of four bottle collection, Thor is a 16 year old cask strength whisky showing all the power of the Norse God. A whisky of superb balance and complexity, Thor shows wonderful smoky and dried fruit character.
£114.90

SPRINGBANK
Sprinbank 10, Rundlets & Kilderkins
A limited release ten year old whisky aged in small oak casks, also known as ‘Rundlets’ or ‘Kilderkins’. An age defying dram with bags of flavour, bottled at a hearty 49.4% ABV. Only 9,000 bottles.
£57.95

LONG LOST WHISKIES
This month we were fortunate enough to see the return of just a few bottles of two long lost Milroy’s of Soho bottlings. We thought they were long gone but a case of each had apparently been hiding in our warehouse all along. We’ve already tucked but there are a couple of bottles left to share amongst the rest of you…

MILROY’S OF SOHO
Knockdhu 1998
The distillery bottling is known as An Cnoc, and even Knockdhu is a little known distillery, from which, this single cask has produced a gloriously sweet, round and full bodied whisky.
£100

MILROY’S OF SOHO
Amrut 2003
A splendid single malt from southern India. Initially matured in India for over three years in ex Bourbon casks. It was then shipped to Scotland and aged for a further year in an ex grain cask. This is thrilling stuff. Robustly rich and fruity, with a fascinating floral edge this lingers on the palate.
Just one case of this glorious whisky remains.
£100

UPCOMING TASTING EVENTS
For an evening of fun, entertainment and a bit of learning you just can’t beat a whisky tasting.

Whisky and Chocolate 1st March 2012, 6:30pm
Be taken through an extravaganza of chocolate and whisky matching’s with Paul A Young’s famous chocolates. The evening will leave taste buds tantalised and chocolate lovers satisfied.
Tickets £50

Fine and Rare, 6th March 2012, 6.30pm
There is nothing quite like drinking a whisky in the knowledge you may never see it again, let alone taste it. With whiskies from long closed distilleries and those which come and go once a year, this tasting of the finest and rarest of whiskies will be a night to remember.
Tickets £100

Until next month, cheers!

To place an order please visit www.milroys.co.uk, call Lee on 020 7437 2385 or email Lee.Tomlinson@jeroboams.co.uk

Milroy’s of Soho
3 Greek Street
London, England W1D 4NX

Amrut Indian Whisky Tasting and Seminar.
Only 25 seats available!!

Come join Brian and Amrut Distillery as we host a seminar and tasting of Amrut’s world renowned whiskies. This is the perfect opportunity for any whiskey lover to learn and taste unique and remarkable single malt whiskies from India. Rank the 3rd best whiskey in the world; come taste and see for yourself why Indian whiskey competes with the best known whiskies from around the world!

When: March 17, 2012 3:00-5:00pm
Where: Brian’s Wine & Liquor Emporium 353 Stelton Road, Piscataway, NJ
Cost: $20 per ticket. Limited Seating Available!
Tickets may be purchased online Here!

Amrut Distilleries

The history of Amrut Distilleries is as old as the history of independent India itself. Indeed, just as India itself, after six decades of notable progress, is now noted as among the global economic leaders, so too has Amrut Distilleries grown both in stature and in size. Among the earliest to enter the then arcane field of liquor making, Amrut Distilleries Limited began in 1948. http://www.amrutwhisky.co.uk/home.php

Springbank Open Golf Competition

FRIDAY 25TH MAY 2012
Tee Times 9.06 am – 10.42 am

MACHRIHANISH GOLF COURSE

To book your tee time please telephone: +44 (0) 1586 555492 or email Janet at: society@springbankwhisky.com 

Entry for non members £31.00 (50% of normal green fee rate). Prior notice is requested if you require either a Caddie or a Golf Cart. Teams of 4. Format Texas Scramble. Handicap allowance 10% of total combined team members. Handicap. Maximum handicap Men 18. Women 25

Prize giving is scheduled for 4.00 pm

Breakfast of bacon rolls and coffee and a carvery lunch following the competition will be available in the clubhouse at a cost of £15 per person

Golf Scotland Image

Hi all,

I am hoping this email finds you well and starting to see the light at the end of the winter! But, hey, its been nowhere near as bad as last year so that’s some consolation.

Lots and lots to tell you about, so make yourself a cup of tea, grab a biccie and settle back to read on…

It’s an Irish Invasion!
All over the UK. Including new venue in Leeds!

To celebrate the annual party that is St. Patrick’s Day and also the fact that Irish Whiskey is really making a welcome resurgence, we have decided to put together a series of tastings looking at all things Irish – whiskey, of course. If you are in any of the following places during the dates advertised, get yourselves booked in and enjoy the craic, they are sure to be sold-out soon!

Manchester – Friday 16th March
York – Saturday 17th March
Newcastle – Saturday 17th March (yes we are in two places at once!)
London – Monday 19th March, Albannach
London – Tuesday 20th March, Red Lion
LEEDS (NEW VENUE!) – Wednesday 21st March

Click here to be taken directly to the page you need in order to find out more or to book.

Brighton Whisky Fest 2012
Saturday 31st March
Hilton Brighton Metropole
King Street
12pm-5pm
£25 per ticket

Our 3rd year in Brighton and it should be a vintage one! Exhibitors and drams galore all on the sunny south coast – what more can you ask for? Well, for the first 100 people, you can take advantage of a 2 for £30 offer we have up at the moment – but be quick as this will be all sold and then the regular price will apply. We may also put an offer out using Groupon and/or Living Social, so keep an eye out for that on our Twitter and Facebook pages…

Click here to be taken to the festival page where you can find out more about the event and book tickets.

London Whisky Fest 2012
Saturday 21st April
Royal Horticultural Halls
St. Vincent’s Square
11am-3pm, 4pm-8pm
£40 per ticket, per session

At last. The Whisky Lounge rolls back into the capital with a festival to remember. A real celebration of all things whisky with exhibitors from around the world and lots of surprises too. Comedy, cocktails, food pairing and women in whisky will all be on the agenda – as well as simple draming for those that want it – so truly something for everyone. BUT WAIT! Before you go ahead and book you should know that we will be running a SUPER-SPECIAL OFFER on ‘Groupon’ next week! In order to find out about when this will take place you will need to follow us on Twitter or Facebook as this is where it will be announced!..

Whisky Mission #2
As our main objective is to ‘bring whisky to the people’, we thought it was high time we did exactly that! Our first employee, Joe, went out on his own in January with a few bottles and did a bit of tweeting for #1 – it was a valiant effort, but we thought the idea had legs and needed more meat. Joe and I both went out onto the streets of our home town of York on the 3rd February and had some fun. We picked random folks and asked them the question, ‘have you ever tried whisky?’ We filmed this extraordinary afternoon and the resulting video is now finished and on YouTube, as well as our website – click here to view it. Just a bit of fun, but some interesting results…

Membership

Our new membership has proved extremely popular we are happy to report. At only £50 for the year with the following benefits;
– 10% off all online event purchases (excepting 2 for 1 or similar offers!)
– 2 free £20 tasting tickets
– Free entry to selected events within our Whisky Fests.
– Advanced notice and opportunity to purchase new bottlings

We still have a few bottles of the 20cl Laphroaig 1998 which we will include for the next 20 people to join – but once their gone, that’s it!.. Click here to view and/or purchase membership.

Newcastle Whisky Fest – February 2012
Lastly, I wanted to thank everyone who turned out for our 4th (wow, is it four already?) Newcastle Whisky Fest. It was a great day and by all accounts our best yet. The balance of exhibitors and customers seemed about right and the new initiatives such as the ‘Speakeasy’ certainly seemed to go down well. If you would like to view the video of the event and a write-up by our very own Joe Clark, please click here to be taken to the relevant page on the blog. Enjoy!

Phew, that’s it for now I think. Lots to look at, lots to think about and even more to do! We look forward to seeing you at a Whisky Lounge event soon.

Sláinte,
Eddie

Eddie Ludlow
Whisky Evangelist

Here’s a report from the official launch of the Highland Park ’Thor’ in Stockholm.

‘Thor’sday February 16 saw the day of the official European launch of the latest Highland Park – their ‘Valhalla’-collection that promises to office whisky in the character style of the old Norse Gods.

A very exciting and also a hard project according to Martin Markvardsen – the Danish brand ambassador for Highland Park. Martin tells me it has taken a lot of research into old Viking writings and chronicles to come up with the profile for this whisky – but they have released the first edition – the ‘Thor’

The launch of Highland Park ‘Thor’ was set in the capitol city of our Swedish brothers – Stockholm and at the Viking theme restaurant of Aifur (http://www.aifur.se/) a through and through concept with traditional long tables and benches, cutlery and the right décor and therefore also the right place for a launch of a whisky in this style. Aifur is located in Stockholm’s ‘Gamla Stan’ (Old town) with it cobbled streets starts to build up your expectations when you approach the place.

Aifur:

Inside Aifur the décor was much more alive like this guy with his Highland Park shield:

Martin Markvardsen said hello upon arrival and after getting a welcoming drink in my hand I quickly found a seat and started chatting with a guy from a local Stockholm whiskyclub.

Shortly after we were treated to a 3 course meal and a lecture about Viking travels by Charlotte Hedenstierna-Jonson from Stockholms University. To accompany the starter there was Highland Park 12yo + 18yo – 2 nice classics which was given a short introduction by Martin.

…and after the starter, it was time for the official launch of the ‘Thor’

Gerry Tosh gave an introduction to this new series and the concept behind before 2 tough looking Vikings in full armor carried a large chest down the stairs and hands Martin the keys.

He then unlocked the chest and in an old-religious style lifts out a bottle of ‘Thor’ and raises it above his head.

At the same time – a dram of the ‘Thor’ is passed around…

So let us de-mystify this much talked about latest release from Highland Park:

Highland Park ’Thor’ 16yo 52,1%, 23.000 Bottles
Cask ratios for this one deserves a mention as it’s not the normal Highland Park style. The ‘Thor’ is 90% refill American oak sherry casks and 10% first fill European oak

My own notes are:

Nose:
Clearly peated, but not in the heavy islay-style, but still significant compared to the normal Highland Park peating level. At the same time it comes across light and fresh and with an earthy note I can only describe as a dunnage warehouse style. Also very fruity, citrus style, flowers in an orange grove?

Taste: The peat hits right away, but like on the nose, its light and disappears to the back of the mouth and lets a large amount tropical fruits and citrus (grape fruits?) notes and some vanilla and oak play on the palate. Also a little spicy and salty in the aftertaste – all which dries out to allow a whiff of trademark Highland Park honey to appear. All in all a whisky with a huge mouthfeel that also allows for finer notes to appear… and what really impresses me with this one, is its incredible freshness all the way on to its medium short finish again with the peat present.

It’s a nice piece of work by Highland Parks whiskymaker Max Mcfarlane for sure.

The next release will hit the streets before the end of the year, but it has still not been decided if it’s going to Freya or Loki that’s next

After the tasting there was a photo-op – here’s Martin Markvardsen and Gerry Tosh and the star of the evening – Thor:

Then it was time for mains and wine and music and entertainment, incl. an demonstration of how the Vikings passed time during the long winter nights. One of the games was ‘cheek pulling’… and the one who gave up first lost, of course – see a demo of it here:

After that it was time to lets some of the impressions settle a bit and have another taste of the ‘Thor’ from the bar and some of the local brew also. Martin and Gerry had commitments with Italian TV so it was a perfect time to indulge myself in another dram.

Before I left for the evening, Martin and I spend some time talking about the whisky scene incl. their business agreement with cooperage at the Sherry Bodega of Gonzales Byass, that does all the cask seasoning for them. Sometimes all the sherry is just poured away or sometimes its reused for another seasoning of new European oak casks. We alsos talked about the craftmansship involved in putting together these casks when a guy almost juggles this 500 liter butt around the coopers yard.

After an introduction to Gerry Tosh, Martin also let me know that Gerry is quitting as Global Brand ambassador to work fulltime in marketing. His job is taken over by Darryl Haldane, which btw is the guy with the mobile in the picture with the 2 cheek-pullers.

It was a very enjoyable evening indeed…and the next day snowy Stockholm showed itself from its beautiful side with the sun coming out just before noon and by that creating the perfect conditions for a walk around the ‘Old Town’ in Stockholm… it is recommended for sure – just as the Highland Park ‘Thor’… so good I just had to have one myself 

Finally a thanks to Martin for the invitation to the event.

Claus ‘BigMac’ Rasmussen,
Chairman, Aalborg Whisky Club, Denmark
http://www.aalborgwhiskylaug.dk/ 

Abbey Whisky

www.abbeywhisky.com

Dalmore Twitter Competition

Win a glorious bottle of Dalmore 12 year old, complete with a special Dalmore tasting glass.

How to Win?

It couldn’t be easier…all you have to do is follow @abbeywhisky on twitter and re-tweet the daily competition message which we will tweet throughout the week.

Tweet as many times as you like, the more times you do, the more entries into the competition you receive.

Competition closes at midnight GMT on Saturday 25th February. The lucky winner will be chosen at random and revealed on Monday 27th February 2012.

That’s all! Happy Tweeting…

Sláinte

Abbey Whisky

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Dalmore 12 Year Old, Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky

The Dalmore spirit benefits from longer than typical maturation – 12 years, instead of the more regular 10. Judicious selection and the precise balance of American white oak and Oloroso sherry wood, delivers a vibrant expression – robust yet elegant, with an aftertaste of brilliant complexity.

Tasting Notes

Deep, golden mahogany in colour, with orange, marmalade and aromatic spices on the nose. Elegant and rich on the palate with intense citrus and hints of sweet vanilla pod to finish, enhanced by increased sherry wood for an aftertaste of great complexity.

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The boring stuff!

1. Rules to participate All you need to do to enter is to re-tweet the daily competition message & follow @abbeywhisky on Twitter. No purchase of any goods or services is necessary to be eligible for entry into this competition. Entries submitted after the closing date will not be counted. The decision of the promoter (Abbey Whisky Limited) is final. No correspondence will be entered into.

2. Restrictions By entering this competition, you confirm that you are at least 18 years of age, and that you meet the minimum legal age for purchasing alcoholic beverages in your country of residence.

3. Prize The winner will receive the stated prize as listed in the daily competition message. The winner will be selected at random from all eligible entries. The prize is as stated and non transferable. No alternative to the prize will be given. If due to circumstances beyond our control, Abbey Whisky Limited reserves the right to award a substitute prize of equal value. All prizes are subject to the terms and conditions of the supplier.

4. Results The winner will be contacted directly via their Twitter inbox. If proof of age is requested by the promoter (Abbey Whisky Limited) and satisfactory proof of age is not provided by the winner, the promoter (Abbey Whisky Limited) reserves the right to withdraw the prize.

Abbey Whisky
enquiries@abbeywhisky.com
www.abbeywhisky.com
07890 983 844

Check out a Charity Blending Day at Compass Box HQ in London. Thanks to the wonderful Gregg Glass at Compass Box Whisky for the enjoyable day of tasting and blending whisky. It had the added bonus of raising funds to help schools in Malawi.

EXCEPTIONAL 50 YEAR OLD GLENFIDDICHS LEAD WHISKY SALE AT BONHAMS EDINBURGH

Two exceptional and rare bottles of 50 year old Glenfiddich lead Bonhams Whisky sale in Edinburgh on 7 March. They are estimated at £13,000 – 15,000 each.

In 1991, 500 bottles of Glenfiddich from casks filled in 1937 and 1939 were released. Bottles 250 and 449 from this batch feature in the Bonhams sale. The whisky has been described as having a complex nose with floral notes, tobacco leaf and a hint of smoke and an initial taste of orange marmalade and vanilla toffee followed by aromatic herbs, soft fruits, and gentle smoke.

Bonhams whisky specialist, Martin Green commented, ““The Glenfiddich 50 year old is regarded as one of the truly great achievements in whisky making and bottles from the 1991 release are very highly sought after. I was lucky enough to be at the launch and to have tasted the whisky then and it is easy to appreciate why it has such a high reputation. ”

Also for sale is a bottle of The Macallan-52 year old-1950, distilled in 1950 and bottled by hand in 2002 (£5,000-7,000) and a Bowmore-40 year old distilled in 1955 and bottled in 1995 in a Caithness Crystal decanter (£5,000-7,000).

For more information on the sale click HERE

NOTES

Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world’s largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America. Today, Bonhams offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street and Knightsbridge; and a further three in the UK regions and Scotland. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Carmel, New York and Connecticut in the USA; and Germany, France, Monaco, Hong Kong and Australia. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 60 specialist areas. For a full listing of upcoming sales, plus details of Bonhams specialist departments go to www.bonhams.com.

Hope you are getting excited…
Come along to our tasting on Wednesday!!
Due to popularity we have to limit it to 60 people!
So come along early to make sure you get in!!!

Usual tasting, so expect lots of whisky for very cheap (2£), and raffles with many exciting prizes. (all proceeds go to Childreach Charity 🙂

Make sure you turn up early to avoid disappointment! We’ll have a fine selection of fantastic drams on the go:)

£2 for 4 drams!!!

Location: BookEnds (top floor), Butchart Centre, University Road, Old Aberdeen
(click here for map)
Time and Date: 7pm – Wednesday 15th February 2012
What to Bring: £2 for entry + Membership Card + money for raffle

2£ entrance for members, 3£ for non members.
This will get you 4 drams from a wide selections of single malts.

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TRIP TO ISLAY!!!!

26TH – 29TH APRIL!

IT IS GOING TO BE AMAZING.
£150 APPROX.

Who wants to come???
LET US KNOW ON WEDNESDAY!

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ABERDEEN WHISKY FESTIVAL

20TH APRIL 2012

More details coming soon…

You don’t want to miss this amazing day!

WWW.ABERDEENWHISKYFESTIVAL.COM

Our mailing address is:

University of Aberdeen Malt Whisky Society
The Butchart Centre
University Road
Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire AB24 3UT

aberdeenwhisky@googlemail.com